Classroom Is Open!

$57.00

Yep. I’m a mixed media artist from Austin, Texas who has collected antique photography for over 15 years. Daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, carte de visites, cabinet cards, real photo postcards…I love them all! Incorporating these images into my artwork has been a long-time passion of mine and I am always exploring new ways to utilize them. I have taught several workshops in the past where we used the actual antique photographs, but I wanted to create something where I could have a little more leeway in adding decorative elements and in building up layers on the images. Printing these antique images on fabric allows me to throw just about everything I have in my studio at them, resulting in a true mixed media project!

Most of the images I will provide for this workshop are taken from cabinet cards. These photographs consist of an albumen print adhered to a stiff cardboard backing of a certain size…4 ¼’ ” by 6 ½” to be exact. You have probably seen stacks of them for sale at antique malls or flea markets. They reached their peak of popularity from 1870- 1890 and millions were made. Fun fact: before albums for this large format photograph were available, they were prominently displayed in drawing room cabinets…hence the name, cabinet cards.

I hope you will enjoy exploring new techniques and mixing up some old favorites as we journey back through the fabric of time and shake things up a bit!

Cheers,

Stephanie Rubiano

“Photograph: a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art.” 

— -Ambrose Bierce

Classroom Is Open!

$57.00

Here's a description of each of our special projects:

Lesson 1 - Creating Fabric Cards

In this lesson you will learn a simple and effective method for printing your imagery on fabric. We will discuss fabric selection and how to construct durable fabric cabinet cards…”fabri-net cards” if you will!

Lesson 2 - Going Technicolor!

Now the fun begins! We will go over techniques to add color and design to the backgrounds of the cards…painting, stenciling, tinting with pastels and more! I will introduce you to a nifty way to create a mask so that you can layer your decorative effects and add a little extra punch to your project!

Lesson 3 - A Stitch In Time

Are you new to needlework or are you an old hand? We will slow down a bit and I will share several simple stitches that will add dimension and interest to your image. Get ready to add some bling as we do a little beading as well!

Lesson 4 - Getting Attached

Have you noticed all of those wonderful decorative metal brads in the scrapbooking section? I will share some ideas on incorporating these and other three-dimensional objects into your fabric project. I love the juxtaposition of these materials (ha!) and think you will too! We will also go over ways to finish out your project for display.

Bonus Lesson - Waxing Eloquent

But wait… there’s more! Adding encaustic wax medium to our fabric cards adds even more strength and allows us to add a few more decorative elements that are unique to the wax. I will demonstrate how to layer wax so that we can scratch back into it and share a foolproof way to add shiny shapes created from metallic leaf.

*** Special Bonus***

As a registered participant in this class, I will be providing you with some high resolution antique photographic images from my personal collection that you may use in your personal artistic creations! You will have so much fun playing with these!

Classroom Is Open!

$57.00

Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.”

— Dorothea Lange

Who is this class for?

Anyone who wants to explore a mixed media approach to a fabric project! So many times we focus on paper as our starting point for an artwork, but fabric has a lot to offer as well! It is actually more forgiving in some respects and can be more easily manipulated. Different fabrics lend themselves to different looks and having them as our basic substrate opens up all sorts of possibilities. Further, the juxtaposition of different materials (metal, wax, paper) with the fabric provides an aesthetic that will capture your imagination and provide endless inspiration!

What will you learn in this class?

Cool stuff! Kidding!

Make a fabric sheet that will go through the printer

Use fusible interfacing to create fabric panels

Tint photographs with pastels

Create masks

Paint on printed fabric

Stencil on fabric

Add design elements using painter’s tape

Make simple embroidery stitches

Add beads to your project

Use decorative brads and other dimensional objects

Use eyelets to make hangers

Use encaustic wax medium and set up a station

Add wax to fabric and build layers

Attach elements with wax

Make marks in wax

Use metallic leaf with the wax

I’m sure I’m leaving something out so you will just have to come join the fun and see what else I have to share with you!